Mental Illness and Ethical Responsibility

Book
(Edited Book)

Mental illnesses devastate individuals and families. They also raise profound and important theoretical and practical issues for us all. How can we tell whether someone really is mentally ill instead of just eccentric? When people with mental illnesses cause harm to themselves, should we restrict their freedom and force them to accept treatment? When people with mental illnesses cause harm to others, should we hold them criminally responsible? Particular cases of mental illness lead to general questions about the nature of responsibility, the purpose of law, and essence of personhood. All of these questions as well as several cases studies are addressed in original essays by students who took Ethics 200, the capstone course in the Ethics Certificate Program of the Kenan Institute for Ethics at Duke University in the Spring terms of 2011 and 2012.